Monday, August 31, 2009

When Brooklyn band Amazing Baby played Lollapalooza earlier this month, they stopped by Spin's backstage tent for an acoustic performance that included a nice cover of The dBs "Black and White." Front man Will Roan says before the song that The dBs is one of the group's favorite bands. It's nice to see The dBs get a shout out from a young, up-and-coming band. Watch the performance below.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

As the sun went down on a balmy Saturday at Central Durham Park in downtown Durham, local rock superstars Superchunk took to the stage to raise money to build fences and unchain dogs. The band tore through a family friendly set (so no "Slack Motherfucker") for the loyal and sometimes a wee bit rowdy crowd at the show.

The band kicked things off with "Cursed Mirror" from 1999's Come Pick Me Up before rolling right into "Seed Toss." The set featured two of the band's newest songs that have become set staples "Crossed Wires" (video here) and "Learned To Surf."

The nice thing about seeing Superchunk is that they don't play the same set at each show. The band only repeated six songs from their XX Merge set last month, opting for some rarer cuts including "Nu Bruises," "The Question is How Fast" and "From the Curve."

Friday, August 28, 2009

Deer Tick, one of the hardest working bands around right now, have extended their fall tour and will return to the Triangle in October. The band were last here in June when they opened for Jenny Lewis at the Cat's Cradle (check out a review and photos here). This time, Deer Tick will be headlining at Local 506 on Monday, October 19. Christopher Denny, Holy Sons and Delorean are also on the bill. Ticket info is not available yet.

Deer Tick released their latest album Born On Flag Day in June. Download the song "Smith Hill" from the album below.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

We usually don't cover comedians on Triangle Music too much, but when we saw the hilarious David Cross was coming to Durham, we just had to share it with you. He will perform at the Carolina Theatre on Wednesday, October 7. Tickets for the show on sale tomorrow, August 28 here, by phone or at the box office for $34, $29 or $25.

To bring this back to music, check out Superchunk's video for "Watery Hands" below that features both David Cross and Janeane Garafalo as the video's directors, trying to turn their performance video into an art piece. It's damn funny.

Quirky Durham folk rock group Midtown Dickens have a new album coming out on September 15 titled Lanterns. While the album won't officially be released for another two weeks, the band will be having a release party in Durham at the Duke Coffeehouse on Friday, August 28 with Mt. Moriah and Des Ark (solo). To top things off, the show is free.

Download a fantastic song from Lanterns titled "Old Dogs" below.

In addition to the release show, Midtown Dickens will also be playing at Fearrington Village in Chapel Hill with Carolina Chocolate Drops on September 13 and at the Shakori Hills Festival in Pittsboro on October 8. Tickets for the Chapel Hill show will set you back $75 though. The money is going to support the Chapel Hill Public Library Foundation.

Check out the rest of Midtown Dickens upcoming dates along with the mp3 below.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Stone Temple Pilots are back at it again. They are hitting the road in October for a string of US dates. The tour will pass over the Triangle for the Triad when it stops in Greensboro at the Special Events Center at the Greesboro Coliseum Complex on Wednesday, October 7. Tickets for the show go on sale to the public on Friday, August 28 for $40 here. A fan club pre-sale starts on Thursday, August 27 here. Australian band Jet, who just released a new album titled Shaka Rock on Tuesday, will open the show as well as other shows on the tour.

Check out the rest of Stone Temple Pilots' dates below.

[UPDATE: Jet is no longer playing the Carolina shows. Meat Puppets are now opening on the tour including the Greensboro show. Apparently Jet have opted for a co-headline tour with Papa Roach. Um, good luck with that guys.]

A second release show for the new Hear Here: The Triangle compilation has been announced. The show will happen at The Pour House in Raleigh on Saturday, October 3. The Love Language, Inflowential and Colossus will perform. Tickets will be $7, but admission will not include a copy of the compilation like the Cradle show.

Speaking of which, don't forget that the Cat's Cradle release party for Hear Here is this Saturday, August 29 featuring Annuals, Birds of Avalon, Hammer No More the Fingers and The Never. Advance tickets for the show are available for $10 via etix.com.

It would be hard to classify Will Hoge’s new album, The Wreckage, as a comeback. While it is his first release after the scooter accident that left him in critical condition a year ago this month, he hadn’t really gone anywhere since his last album in 2007.

But it’s also difficult to listen to the opening flourishes of “Hard to Love,” the album’s first track, without thinking “Wow, Will’s back.”

With The Wreckage, available now on vinyl and available September 29 via CD and digital download, Hoge seems to have tapped into a vein that runs deep within and the end result is without a doubt his most honest, true-to-self release to date.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter Langhorne Slim is releasing a new album in September, just 17 months after he released his self-titled album. The new album titled Be Set Free will be released on September 29 via Kemado Records. Download the song "I Love You, But Goodbye" from the album below.

In October, Langhorne Slim will hit the road in support the record. The tour will bring him back to the Cat's Cradle on Sunday, November 15. Tickets are on sale now via etix.com for $13. Check out the rest of the dates along with the mp3 below.

Lou Barlow's new album Goodnight Unknown is due out on October 6 via Merge Records and now we have some insight into the making of the album. Barlow and Merge have released a 30-minute documentary focusing on the work that went into producing the album narrated by Barlow. It's a fascinating insight into the process including talk about gear, songwriting balancing life and work and other things. It's well worth a watch.

On top of that, Barlow has released the first video from Goodnight Unknown for the song "Don't Apologize." It's an intriguing mix of live performance and animation featuring a praying mantis in a doll house. It's pretty cool. Merge will make a new music video available each week on their newly launched LooTube page.

The Troika Festival has announced 15 new bands that are playing in November. It seems that the saved a lot of the big names for this announcement which includes The Love Language, Megafaun, Pipe, Red Collar, Butterflies, The Proclivities and others. Check out the bands added below and the original 56 bands here. Be sure to check out some mp3s next to some of the bands names below.

The schedule for the festival is due out later this week. Passes will be available when the schedule is announced. We'll bring you more info once we have it.

Below you'll see the show closer of the night where Bowerbirds and Megafaun joined forces to cover The Rosebuds song "Hold Hands and Fight." The performance has a few blemishes, but it's a great tribute The Rosebuds who were in attendance. Phil Moore introduced the song saying that there would be no Bowerbirds without the album Birds Make Good Neighbors. That's quite a compliment to Ivan and Kelly.

Kiss, the self-proclaimed "Hottest band in the land," are hitting the road in September on the Alive 35 Tour, celebrating the released of their 1975 live album Alive. The band have promised bigger pyrotechnics, a new stage and new costumes for the tour. They will be playing for two and a half hours each night. The set will include their old hits as well as songs from their forthcoming album Sonic Boom, due out on October 6 exclusively at Walmart (bleck). Buckcherry will open the entire tour.

Unfortunately, the tour is not coming to the Triangle or even North Carolina, but you hardcore Kiss fans van travel to Hampton, VA (near Norfolk) on October 16 or to Greenville, SC on October 17 to see the band. Check out all of the dates below.

Pitchfork has apparently decided that the decade is already over and they've picked their top 500 songs of the 2000s. You have to take the list for what it's worth considering they picked Outkast's song "B.O.B." as the best song of the decade. Don't get me wrong, it's a awesome song, but the best of the decade? I think not.

With that out of the way, it's good to see that Merge Records has a fair number of tracks on the list, eleven to be exact (unless I missed something). There's some obligatory Arcade Fire and Spoon, but Lambchop, The Clientele, Camera Obscura and M. Ward also made the list. Check out Merge's songs below and the complete list of 500 here.

Friday, August 21, 2009

The final concert of the Locally Grown series in Chapel Hill was presented by Local 506, and boy was it a doozy.

Lost in the Trees got the evening started with a beautiful set of their unique orchestral pop music. The set included songs from the band's debut EP Time Taunts Me as well as their LP All Alone in an Empty House. The band also played at least one new song from a new album they are working on. The band was fantastic as always and pleased the hundreds in attendance.

By the time The Love Language took the stage, the sun had set and the temperature had dropped, though the humidity was still awful. The band grooved right through their set though, sounding as tight as they every have. A nice addition during the set was Merge Records employee Spott on trumpet during a number of songs. It added an extra bit of umph to the tunes which was nice, considering the set was essentially the same as the Duke Gardens show last month.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

It appears that the Rock Hall benefit show that was postponed until the spring now has a new date. According to Pollstar, one of the original headliners, Patty Smyth and Scandal are set to play Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Cary on April 15, 2010. We'll have to wait and see if any of the other original performers are still on board for the event or if there will be some new additions.

There's no official announcement of the newdate yet, so there are no ticket details available. We'll keep you posted.

On Monday, September 7 at Local 506, a cavalcade of local musicians will come together to support local musician Britt Harper Uzzell, better known as Snuzz. The show is free, but a $10 donation is encouraged. The money will go to support Snuzz who is uninsured and has an upcoming treatment for lymphoma.

The night will feature a reunion of two of Snuzz's old bands, International Orange and Big Kids. His new band The Numbers will also perform.

Members of the following bands are set to perform throughout the night.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Local string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops have a fairly busy few months ahead of them. The group signed to Nonesuch Records earlier this year and are tentatively scheduled to release their first album with the label in early 2010. Between now and then though, they will be on tour bringing their music to the masses. Their busy schedule will also continue into the new year.

The tour has a trio of Triangle dates coming up soon including a show at the American Tobacco Campus in Durham on August 27, a show a the Cat's Cradle on September 5 and a show at Fearrington Village in Pittsboro on September 9. Check out all of the upcoming dates below.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

I'm a bit obsessed with lists and playlists and such, so as I was rooting through iTunes, I was surprised to see that local Raleigh rockers Polvo had their very own, very new iTunes Essentials playlist. Check out the playlist below and check it out on iTunes here. It features tracks from the band's 90s releases, but will have to be updated once the band's new album In Prism is released on September 8.

What's a bit off though is the picture. Who the hell are those five guys? I'm fairly certain that's not Polvo, so if you can identify the band/group to the right there, drop us a comment.

Sometimes Roman Candle guitarist and excellent singer-songwriter Keegan DeWitt will release a new solo album in September titled Islands. Roman Candle is credited with producing the record and Skip, Logan and Timshel Matheny are featured on some of the tracks. Download the song "Telephone" from the album below.

Keegan will be on tour next month promoting the album and will make a stop in Chapel Hill and The Nightlight on Wednesday, September 16. Parachute Musical and Wakey Wakey will open the show. Check out the rest of the dates below which also include stops in Charlotte and Asheville.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Indie-folk group Blind Pilot are hitting the road this fall with Rhode Island group The Low Anthem in tow. The final dates of the tour will bring the two groups to the Cat's Cradle on Monday, November 9. Tickets will be on sale soon now via etix.com for $10.

The last time Blind Pilot was in the Triangle, they were opening for The Decemberists at Memorial Auditorium in Raleigh. Check out a review and photos of that show here.

The godfather of theatrical shock rock, the one and only Alice Cooper, has announced new dates for his "Theatre of Death" tour which includes a stop in Durham. The theatrical event that will see Alice killed in four different acts will come to the Durham Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, September 30. Tickets for the show go on sale this Friday, August 21 at 10 AM for $22.50-$47.50 here.

It should be a really entertaining show which will both open and close with Cooper's hit song "School's Out." Check out more info on the tour on Cooper's blog which includes a interesting check list for the show including a "New microphone stand impaler." Good times.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

More than 40,000 people packed into Atlanta's Piedmont Park on Saturday for a concert most of them wouldn't surely forget. Sir Paul McCartney took the stage at about 8:40 pm and launched into The Beatles' tune "Drive My Car."

The show did not let up as he tore through some of his solo and Wings hits including "Jet," "Flaming Pie, "Let Me Roll It" and others. Some of the lesser known tunes really shined in the set though. The Band on the Run tune "Mrs. Vanderbilt" grooved along and got people singing "Ho, hey ho!" and "Sing the Changes" from The Fireman's new album Electric Arguments was incredibly phenomenal and uplifting. Images of Barack Obama formed in swirling lights behind the band throughout the song.

Friday, August 14, 2009

The sequel to last year's Rock Hall Benefit show at Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Cary scheduled for September 2 has been postponed until Spring 2010.

Tickets purchased for the September benefit will not be honored for the to-be-rescheduled show, which could mean lineup changes are in store. (Though, if you've seen the lineup, that's probably a good thing.)

If you purchased tickets for the postponed show, you can get a refund at the point of purchase. Online and phone sales will be refunded automatically.

Aerosmith announced late yesterday that the group will cancel the remainder of its summer tour after Steven Tyler's recent fall from the stage resulted in a broken shoulder and required 20 stitches in his head.

"I was doing the Tyler shuffle and then I zigged when I should have zagged ... and I slipped, and as I live on the edge ... I fell off the edge!," Tyler said in a statement.

Ticket refunds for the rest of the tour dates will be available at point of purchase. Tickets purchased via phone or online for the previously postponed concerts in Charlotte and Raleigh will be automatically refunded.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Chapel Hill punks Pipe are making a lot of local news lately. They played XX Merge last month, they announced another local show at Broad Street Cafe and now they have digitally re-released their 1992 debut EP Ball Peen. The band have made the EP available via CyTunes, the download service started in honor of local music supporter Cy Rawls who passed away last year after a battle with cancer. You can buy the full 6-song EP for $5 or individual songs for $1 each.

Guitar legend Les Paul has died today at the age of 94 in White Plains, NY. He was most known for creating the Gibson Les Paul guitar which became one of the most popular guitars of all-time. Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin may be it's most famous player.

Check out a nice little video about Les Paul below where he talks about working with Bing Crosby, being inducted into the inventors hall of fame and performing into his 90s. He was a true legend and will be missed.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Alt-country troubadour Lucinda Williams is hitting the road this September on a month-long tour that will be making a stop in the Triad. She will play the beautiful Carolina Theatre in Greensboro, NC on Friday, September 25. Tickets for the show are on sale now here for $32.50, $28.50 or $24.50.

Williams' latest album Little Honey was released in October 2008. Check out her performance of the song "Real Love" from the album on the Late Show With David Letterman last fall below.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Our friends over at WellDoneTour.com and NewTim.com were kind enough to share some photos with us from their recent travels out west with Megafaun and Bowerbirds. We're not sure where the first few photos are from featuring the Megafaun guys jumping off cliff/ledge, but we'll try to figure that out. The rest of the photos have a city and state accompanying them. It looks like our local bands are having a good time on the road.

The long-awaited new full-length album from I Was Totally Destroying It titled Horror Vacui will finally see the light of day in October thanks to Greyday Records. The band will celebrate it's release on October 13 with an in-store performance at Schoolkids Records on Hillsborough Street. A time is not currently set for the performance, but we'll keep you posted.

In other IWTDI news, the band released their limited edition The Beached Margin/Done Waiting 12" vinyl today, August 11. It's available from Greyday Records and will be available at "select stores." I'm betting Schoolkids is one of them.

Monday, August 10, 2009

We mentioned the new Hear Here local compilation album being released by Terpsikhore on August 29 no too long ago, but now the full track list is available thanks to The Independent.

One notable absence from the release is Annuals. The band recorded the Johnny Cash song "Flesh and Blood" for the album, but due to licensing problems, the track had to be cut. It is not lost though. You can hear the song in the preview video below and Annuals will play the song at the Hear Here launch party at the Cat's Cradle on August 29.

I'm most excited to hear The Rosebuds song "Brad Cook is Not Your Man." With a title like that, how can it be bad? Check out the complete track list below.

The east and west coasts are joining forces this fall for a great indie rock tour. Blitzen Trapper from Portland, OR (on Seattle-based Sub Pop Records) and Wye Oak from Baltimore, MD (on Durham-based Merge Records) will tour the US in September 27 in San Francisco.

The tour will make a stop a the Cat's Cradle on Friday, October 9. Tickets are on sale now via etix.com for $10. Check out our review and photos of Wye Oak's show at Memorial Hall for XX Merge here.

Download songs from both bands below, including the title track from Blitzen Trapper's forthcoming EP titled Black River Killer.

Merge Records has made two of their new fall releases available to stream online almost a month before their release.

The first is Polvo's new album In Prism that is due out on September 8. Download the song "Beggar's Banquet" from the album below. Check out photos of their performance at XX Merge at the Cat's Cradle in July here and get more details on the new album here.

Polvo will be on tour in September and October. Check out the dates below.

Coldplay rolled into Raleigh Friday night—I mean Thursday night (Chris Martin thought it was Friday at one point)—and brought down the house at the TWC Pavilion. The band played a two-hour set relying heavily on their latest album Viva La Vida while still hitting a lot of the greatest hits for the fans.

The stage show was a fun little spectacle that included releasing a bunch of yellow balls that were bounced around the crowd during "Yellow" and canons firing butterfly confetti during "Lovers in Japan."

Thursday, August 06, 2009

There are lots of weird things about running a music blog, and sometimes the one of the strangest things is which post you write becomes the most popular.

Recently, a ridiculous number of people have come here to find out one thing — when will Aerosmith play their postponed show at Walnut Creek, which was delayed a day before the show in early July when Steven Tyler injured his leg.

There's still no word on when that show will take place, but in my opinion...it's not looking good, folks.

Former Pedro the Lion frontman and excellent singer-songwriter David Bazan is hitting the road this fall to support his new album Curse Your Branches. The album will be released on September 1 and the tour will kick off a month later in San Francisco. Say Hi will join Bazan for the whole tour and their guitarist Eric Elbogen will be part of Bazan's band.

The tour will come to Local 506 in Chapel Hill on Thursday, October 15. Tickets are $12 and are on sale now via etix.com. Download the song "Bless This Mess" from the new album below. You'll also find all of the tour dates down there too.

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

Liam Finn and his percussion playing and singing cohort Eliza Jane have a new 5-song EP coming out on Yep Roc Records. It's titled Champagne in Seashells and will be released on September 1. Download the first track, "Plane Crash," from the EP below.

Liam and Eliza currently have no tour dates scheduled in the United States Triangle, but you can check out our coverage of their shows at The Pour House and Local 506 last year here and here. Their current US dates are below.

Carolina Hopefest is returning to Booth Amphitheatre on September 27 to raise money and awareness for Beacon of Hope, a non-profit organization in Nairobi, Kenya that was created in 2001 to address the HIV/AIDS pandemic and its affects among women in poor communities.

This year's show will feature returning headliners the Indigo Girls as well as Matt Nathanson. The Indigo Girls headlined the first Hopefest back in 2006. At least one more act is expected to be announced for this year's show. We'll keep you posted on who that will be.

Canadian folk rockers Great Lake Swimmers are hitting the road in the US throughout the fall in support of their latest album Lost Channels. The tour will bring them to the ArtsCenter in Carrboro on Friday, October 2. Tickets are on sale now via etix.com for $12.

Check out the video for excellent song "Pulling on a Line" from Lost Channels below.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

It's been less than five months since The Love Language's first Daytrotter session was posted, but they're already up for round two. This time, the band played the fantastic new song titled "This Blood is Our Own." They also played the song at their recent Duke Gardens show. The rest of the set comes from the band's self-titled debut an includes "Two Rabbits," "Night Dogs" and "Stars." Download or stream the session here.

The Love Language are currently on tour with Cursive which will wrap next week. The band will return to the Triangle for a free show at the Locally Grown show the at Wallace Deck in Chapel Hill on Thursday, August 20 with Lost in the Trees. Check out all of the band's upcoming dates below.

Though it's still three months away, buzz for the 2009 Troika Festival is already building with the release of the bulk of the line-up. 56 bands are on the bill so far, and they run the gamut. It includes local heavy-hitters such as Bowerbirds, Dex Romweber Duo, Birds of Avalon and Hammer No More the Fingers as well as up-and-coming groups like The Huguenots, The Tender Fruit and Gray Young. Check out the full list of 56 bands below.

Troika will be going down on November 5, 6 and 7 in Durham. Specific venues and schedules will be released in due time.

Meanwhile, sample some mp3s of some of the bands playing the festival below. Any bands on the list who want an mp3 of your band added, just drop it to us via email at triangle_ music@hotmail.com.

Seattle band Throw Me the Statue, New Zealand pop duo The Brunettes and spacey Portland band Nurses are hitting the road together at the end of August for a three-week North American tour. The three bands will make a stop in Durham at the Duke Coffeehouse of Saturday, September 5. Details for the show are not available yet, but we'll keep you posted.

Throw Met the Statue's new album Creaturesque is due out on Secretly Canadian Records on Tuesday, August 4. Nurses will release their debut album for Dead Oceans titled Apple's Acre on Tuesday, August 4 too. The Brunettes are still out supporting their 2007 Sup Pop release Structure and Cosmetics. Check out mp3s from each of the aforementioned albums below. "Hi-Fi Goon" by Throw Me the Statue and "Caterpillar Playground" by Nurses are both particularly nice.

Sunday, August 02, 2009

Recently, a bunch of great local bands got together to work on a compilation album of all new songs from each band. The result of their effort was the album Hear Here: The Triangle due out on August 29 via Terpsikhore Records. It feature music by The Rosebuds, Annuals, The Never, Lonnie Walker, The Old Ceremony and others. Check out a full list of bands below along with a teaser video for the album.

To launch the album, there will be a big show at the Cat's Cradle on August 29. The show will feature Annuals, Birds of Avalon, Hammer No More the Fingers and The Never. Tickets for the show are just $10 and each ticket includes a copy of the album. You can buy tickets now via etix.com.